The title is “The Importance of Being Earnest” and it had multiple meanings. The first meaning is the irony between earnest and the name Earnest. The meaning of earnest is honesty, which causes irony because the is opposite of what Earnest demonstrates in the play. In addition, Earnest was not honest about his identity in the play and was living a double life. The second meaning is the importance of being honest, which he realized when he discovered his name is actually Earnest. II. Oscar Wilde was born October 16, 1854. His death was taking place in Paris in the year 1900. In addition, he married Constance Lloyd in 1884. Wilde attender Trinity College, Dublin, and Magdalen College for his education. Wilde happens to believe is aestheticism, which supported the arts beauty. After college, Wilde moved to London and continue his writing career. In the 1880s he wrote reviews, edited magazines, and published a volume of poetry as well as children stories. He had many great works, which includes “The Importance of Being Earnest”, “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, “Lady Windermere’s Fan”, “A Woman of No Importance”, and “An Ideal Husband”. III. The main character is Jack, which …show more content…
The theme of the play is the issues within the Victorian society, which mainly focuses on the topic of marriage. This is demonstrated when Jack asked Gwendolen for marriage. Lady Bracknell responded by asking him about his social standing instead of asking do he really love Gwendolen or not. This proves that social rank is more important than people true feelings towards someone. Wilde uses irony to bring out his opinion on the social class issue. In addition, he symbolism to show the differences between the two social classes. Brigitte Bastiat believes that “Therefore Oscar Wilde rebels against the artificial and hypocritical social codes of his class and suggests that anybody can pass for an aristocrat with a bit of practice” (Bastiat), which tells how rank is more important than
Oscar was born on October 16th 1854 under the birthname Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde in Dublin, Ireland. Oscar’s parents were an important influence on him. His mother, Jane Wilde, was a nationalist Irish poet who went by the pen name Speranza. Both his mother and his father, Sir William Wilde, were educated people. His father was an ear and eye doctor, who had many intellectual interests. Oscar was the youngest of three children; he and his older brother were encouraged to listen party dialogue in the salon of their home. The Wilde children were exposed to different languages through their French bonne and German governess. At age nine, Oscar’s parents sent him to Portora Royal Boarding School. He then attended Trinity College in Dublin with a royal scholarship.
The interesting life of Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde began on October 16, 1854, in Dublin, Ireland. By the end of his college education, Wilde had become one of the most famous aesthetes; it was this recognition which drew attention to his affected paradoxes and his witty sayings. This fame led to his 1882 lecture tour of America. In 1885 Wilde began work as a book reviewer for the Pall Mall Gazette and a critic for the Dramatic Reviewer. Two years later, he was appointed as the editor of the Lady's World Magazine. The year 1888 marked his first major published work The Happy Prince and Other Stories, which was a charming collection of children's stories. Three years later Wilde made a name for him self by publishing four books in 1891: A House of Pomegranates, Lord Arthur Savile's Crime, Intentions, and The Picture of Dorian Gray -- the latter earning him his greatest fame to date" ("Biograp...
The play contains a constant exchange of verbal banter between the characters. Wilde does this in a comical way, while still using the witty remarks as a way to satirize the absurdities and excesses in the character’s lives. Lady Bracknell, Gwendolen’s mother, is a lady of high society, and she bases her life on the standards and morals that the Victorian society proposes. The film replaces the verbal banter with physical humor which ultimately loses the satire and wit the characters have in the play. In Act I of the play, Lady Bracknell questions Jack about his life in order to approve her daughter’s engagement to him. Her questions are based on what the society deems important, instead of what she, as a mother, should care about. Lady Bracknell says, “Fortunately in England, at any rate, education produces no effect whatsoever. If it did, it would prove a serious danger to the upper classes … What is your income?” (Act I. 1435). Obviously, the verbal banter between Lady Bracknell and Jack is quite comical, but more importantly it satirizes the things that Lady Bracknell and the Victorians value essential. The film modifies this scene into a more visual one for a modern audience. Lady Bracknell and Jack still have their witty conversation; however, Wilde’s intended effect of the verbal banter is lost. The director modified the verbal banter because a modern audience most likely would not comprehend Wilde’s intentions. The visual aspect of this scene is the director’s way of expressing the satires of the Victorian morals in a way that the modern audience will understand. In the film, this scene is made visual as Jack enters Lady Bracknell’s home. Large pillars, expensive paintings, and grandiose doors create the mood. She sits ...
Wilde does this in order to portray Lady Bracknell with very strong Victorian views that are illogical and humorous to the reader thus satirising the values which are prominent in Victorian standards. Consequently it can be seen that Lady Bracknell is corrupt beyond reason, sacrificing the happiness of her daughter for her Victorian values and ridiculing Jack for his less than exemplary past. Some critics believe Lady Bracknell to be a ‘living parody of upper class values’ which can be
The wit of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest stems from his place in society and his views of it. He mocks the Victorian aristocracy through his statements and satirising of marriage dependent on social class and wealth, the careful implantation of comedic techniques which add to the effect of the message Wilde aims for the society to take into consideration and the ignorance portrayed by the Victorian society. These socially acceptable mockeries allow the audience to laugh at the satirical social statements while learning a didactic lesson about the current society issues. Through Wilde’s satirical wit, he completes the educational tales he was aiming for, emphasising to readers the insaneness that society can be and its rules.
Two adolescent women who incorrectly consider the men’s names to be Ernest, and who are passionate about the men for this very reason think highly of both Jack and Algernon. In relating the story of mix-ups and mistaken identities, the ideals and manners of the Victorian society are satirized in a comedy where the characters "treat all the trivial things of life seriously and all the serious things of life with sincere and studied triviality"(Wilde, Oscar). Oscar Wilde’s amusing scenes often take their source in societal satire and unconventional (Baselga 15). All the way through his play, The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde satirizes education, women, and morality.
In Oscar Wilde’s drama The Importance of Being Earnest, he uses light-hearted tones and humor to poke fun at British high society while handling the serious theme of truth and the true identity of who is really “Earnest.” Truth as theme is most significantly portrayed through the women characters, Gwendolen and Cecily but to present serious themes comically, Wilde portrays women to be the weaker sex of society, despite the seriousness of the subject—the identity of the men they want to marry.
The Literature, Importance of Being Ernest, by Fiona Gregory, is complete reflection of the nature of marriage and social life during the Victorian age. It has helped accept and appreciate that different people have different cultural observations. It based on the theatrical play, The Importance of Being Earnest, by Oscar Wilde. The storyline presents the life of a Jack, who lives a double life. He is Jack Worthing in the village and Ernest Worthing in the city. He is in pursuit of his fiancé, Gwendoline, who loves him solely because he is called Ernest (Gregory 18). However, their marriage cannot take place because Lady Bracknell, Gwendoline's mother, does not approve Jack as a suitable suitor. She insists her daughter's suitor must be a young
Oscar Wilde was born in 1854 and led a normal childhood. After high school, Wilde attended Oxford College and received a B.A. in 1878. During this time, he wrote Vera and The Importance of Being Earnest. In addition, "for two years Wilde had dressed in outlandish outfits, courted famous people and built his public image" (Stayley 317). Doing so earned Wilde a job with Rich...
The play The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde is full of irony. Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff, the protagonists in the play, get themselves into a complicated situation called Bunburyism (as Algernon refers to it). They pretend to be someone that they are not to escape their daily lives. They lie to the women they admire and eventually the truth is unveiled.
Oscar Wilde’s treatment of high society and manners are explored in the play “The Importance of Being Earnest”. Here, members of the upper class display a great deal of pride and pretense, feeling that they are inherently entitled to their wealth and higher social position. An example is Lady Bracknell, who is preoccupied with maintaining the status quo that she quickly squashes any signs of rebellion. Characters from higher societies/classes are mainly concerned about their reputation and respectability. Thus, expectations of the upper class for both men and women include being upstanding, rich and come from a wealthy family. Wilde’s criticism on high society and manners are explored through the characteristics of Lady Bracknell; the dialogue between Gwendolen and Cecily; and the characteristics of Jack in the country.
Oscar Wilde begins with a joke in the title that is not only a piece of frivolity. It concerns the problem of recognising and defining human identity. The use of earnest and Earnest is a pun, which makes the title not only more comic, but also leads to a paradox. The farce in The Importance of Being Earnest consists in the trifle that it is important not only to be earnest by nature but to have the name Earnest too. Jack realizes "the vital Importance of Being Earnest"(53) not till the end of the play. Algernon calls the act of not being earnest Bunburying which gives the plot a moral significance. Bunburying means inventing a fictitious character by which one can escape the frustrating social norms. Algernon says to Jack:
In conclusion, The Importance of Being Earnest strongly focuses on those of the upper class society and the vanity of the aristocrats who place emphasis on trivial matters concerning marriage. Both Algernon and Jack assume the identity of "Ernest" yet ironically, they both are beginning their marital lives based on deception and lies. Lady Bracknell represents the archetypal aristocrat who forces the concept of a marriage based on wealth or status rather than love. Through farce and exaggeration, Wilde satirically reveals the foolish and trivial matters that the upper class society looks upon as being important. As said earlier, a satirical piece usually has a didactic side to it.
Oscar Wilde had a quick and fluid intelligence coupled with a gift for languages. His early education included attending Porotra Royal School in Enniskillen (1873) Trinity College in Dublin (1874-1879), and Magdalen College in Oxford. He excelled in his studies. Along with his schoolwork, Wilde began to build his reputation as a poet. His early work garnered some success. In 1878, Oscar Wilde won the Newdigate prize for poetry. His entry was inspired by a vacation to Ravenna.
Lady Bracknell represents the typical aristocrat who focuses the idea of marriage on social and economic status. She believes that if the men trying to marry these girls are not of proper background, there is no engagement. Through this major exaggeration, Wilde satirically reveals the irrational and insignificant matters that the upper class society uses to view marriage.